Are you keen to be more eco-friendly? If so, it’s crucial that you think about your levels of waste. Ideally, you should be aiming for a zero-waste home.
We know what you’re thinking. Is this even possible? People on our forum constantly question whether anyone has actually achieved a zero-waste lifestyle.
You might be pleased to hear that there are some real examples of people achieving what is basically a zero-waste home. For instance, Kathryn Kellog has reduced her level of annual landfill waste down to an amount she can hold in her hand.
But how can you achieve this and start taking real steps to obtain this goal? Well, read our guide below and learn the steps you can take to create a zero waste home.
Dodge The Junk
One of the easiest ways to reduce your levels of waste is to start addressing the level of junk mail coming to your home. Junk mail is a waste of paper, electricity, and ink. It’s also a complete nuisance.
If you contact the company, you can opt-out of receiving these letters in the post. That’s quickly going to help you reduce the level of waste that comes through your letterbox and ends up in the trash.
Don’t Waste Electricity
You should also think about ways to reduce the amount of electricity that you’re wasting throughout the day.
For instance, do make sure that you are switching off lights when they are not in use. You should also take the time to switch off tech equipment as well. When a tech item is charged, unplug it.
A lot of people think that a tech item that is fully charged and plugged in isn’t using electricity. That’s not always the case. Even devices on standby can be using a lot of electricity.
Go Renewable
Of course, if you are thinking about reducing your electricity wastage, consider exploring renewable energy options. Renewable energy will allow you to ensure that you immediately cut down the cost. Not only should cost encourage you to move to renewable energy, but it’s a crucial step towards building a zero waste home.
It will also help eliminate the high electricity levels being used in your home. Electricity consumption is one of the key ways we are damaging the planet. Experts also believe that the pressure on the national grid will cause power outages in the near future.
You can reduce this issue and eliminate waste by investing in something like solar panels. You can also get a storage device. This ensures that any electricity generated and not used through the day can still be accessed at a later time.
Don’t Waste Food
We’ll explore a key way that you can eliminate food waste a little further down. However, it’s true to say that most households put a lot of their food in the trash. Why is this?
We tend to cook more food than we need. Instead of saving this, we just get rid of it. There are two ways to tackle this problem. Either you can control the amount of food you’re cooking. Or, you can save food that is left over.
This is a great way to save money too and you’ll be amazed by how long leftovers will last you. Particularly, if you start freezing them.
Fix Leaking Taps
Water waste is an issue that is constantly overlooked. There are areas of your home where you need to use water. You can reduce the amount of water wasted with simple steps like not running the tap when brushing your teeth, but you can’t eliminate it completely.
However, you should pay attention to large sources of water waste. An example of this is a leak. You’re not getting any benefit from leaking water in your home. Instead, it’s costing you a fortune.
Call a plumber and make sure that they fix a potential leak in your property. You’ll immediately notice a change to your water bill.
Target Key Offenders
There are various household products that are going to contribute a lot more to your waste levels than others. It’s important that you start eliminating these from your lifestyle.
You can start slowly but eventually, they shouldn’t have a presence in your home at all.
Water bottles are one of the most common issues here. You can start using a metal reusable water bottle instead. That way you’ll never have to put another plastic bottle in the trash. These are a major problem because a lot of plastic bottles are difficult to recycle.
Straws are another problem too. There are plastic straws that you should reuse where possible and there are also metal straws. These are great and will last for years without needing to be disposed of.
Paper towels are another problem that will stop you from achieving a zero waste home. You can address this issue by making sure that you start investing in reusable cloths instead. You’ll be able to wash these with the rest of your laundry. That’s going to help you save a lot of paper and keep this out of your waste.
You might even want to think about using old clothes as rags to clean up messes too. Again, these can be used repeatedly and are easy to clean. This is going to save you from throwing out old clothes in the trash.
You can also think about composting any paper towels and that brings us to the final step.
Start Composting
This isn’t easy but it is important. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, nearly a quarter of the waste that ends up in landfills is food products. This makes up solid waste so we need to ensure we’re diverting this wherever possible.
Composting provides a real option. All you need to get started is a countertop container for compost. There are advanced tech options on the market, but this could just be a bowl. Then, you can select an area in your garden where you will be able to start your compost pile.
As you can see, there are steps you can take to achieve a zero-waste lifestyle. Some of these are easier than others and with the right determination, there’s nothing stopping you from making great strides here.
Join The Discussion
If you enjoyed reading our post, please do sign up to our forum and continue the discussion alongside the rest of our community.
We have also written a great post on how to start working towards an eco-friendly home, which discusses a number of product changes you can make in order to become more environmentally friendly. Read it here, and let us know what you think!